Conran and Partners have collaborated with America’s oldest apparel retailer, Brooks Brothers, in this year’s RIBA Regent Street Window Project.
Now in its sixth year, the project unites 13 flagship retailers with a like-minded RIBA practice to create 13 engaging window displays. With each retailer setting a unique brief and budget, the outcome is a wonderfully energetic public exhibition seen by over three million people during the London Design Festival from 7th-27th September.
During a Polo match in the UK in 1896, Brooks Brothers discovered that players on horseback secured their shirt collars with pins so that the collars would not flap while riding. The savvy retailer famously adapted this idea by permanently affixing working buttons to the collars and introduced “The original button down polo shirt” to men’s tailoring and has since turned it into a true fashion icon.
Upon visiting the store, Conran and Partners were inspired by this story and the charming array of collars on display. Their horizontal configuration with angular cotton fabric evoked images of birds in flight created by photography pioneers such as Eadweard Muybridge and Étienne Jules Marey.
The designers experimented with varying gestures of an individual collar; twisting and turning the material to bring about a sense of life, energy and personality; like a bird with open wings.
“A flock of collars captured mid-flight represents Brooks Brothers’ innovative spirit with a single gold button-down leading the formation. The collar is the main protagonist of their fashion story and we hope the ceramic installation captures the curiosity of passers-by.” – Tim Rundle, Design Director, Conran and Partners
Craftsmanship is integral to both Brooks Brothers’ and Conran and Partners’ ethos; utilising the hands of the craftsman and the material’s properties to tell a story in an emotive and considered way.
Conran and Partners explored various materials and craft techniques to form the collars before working with London-based ceramicist Billy Lloyd. Together they experimented with scale, shape and surface to recall the simple romance of Brooks Brothers’ original story. Billy was able to sculpt, stretch and sensitively personalise each collar into its own dynamic form; making each collar different and reiterating the concept of birds in flight.
“Working much like a tailor would, I made templates and patterns to cut the individual pieces of porcelain. The clay was then pressed between two sheets of canvas to achieve a fine woven texture and the curved shapes express the plasticity of the porcelain. By leaving the surface unglazed, the ceramic collars appear light and ethereal, creating a sense of theatre upon the streets of London.” – Billy Lloyd, Ceramicist
Conran and Partners utilised fishing wire and engineered fixings to invisibly suspend the ceramic collars, as if floating in the air. They worked closely with Into Lighting to develop a lighting strategy that would give the collars high-impact and intense drama both day and night.
“Our collaborative installation is a physical interpretation of an inspiring story. Like Brooks Brothers, it is driven as much by innovation as it is traditional craftsmanship, combining heritage and creativity in a dynamic and elegant form.” – Simon Kincaid, Project Director, Conran and Partners
Info and images courtesy of Conran and Partners